Tag Archives: deck safety
Dog friendly deck gates prove that man’s best friend can also benefit from outdoor living enjoyment
These Atlanta homeowners chose to install a dog gate to gain more control over their pets surroundings.
Dogs by nature are companion animals. Throughout history dogs have been touted as “man’s best friend”. Dogs play a crucial role in our lives, and are considered to be part of the family unit. At Archadeck, we are seeing a trend with our owners asking for customized dog gates for their outdoor living areas such as decks, porches and patios. The dog gate serves a dual purpose for Fido and dog owners.
Custom dog gate at top of 2nd story deck
Dog deck gates can give you and your dog all the benefits of enjoying the outdoors, while having complete control over their surroundings. Let’s say for example your family and the neighbors family are enjoying a day by your backyard pool. The only dilemma is that the dog keeps jumping in the pool. In an effort to appease your guests, and to make everyone happy you opt to enclose your dog inside the house for the afternoon. This means that Fido will miss the exercise, fresh air and camaraderie of being part of the family. With a custom installed dog deck gate, you can opt to keep Fido in the backyard but away from the pool deck area, or keep him in close proximity to the action within the deck. The choice is yours.
This deck features a sliding gate perfect for the family, and the family dog.
Dog gates offer safety, security and the convenience of having the freedom to spend more time with your pampered pooch. Our dog gates can be custom built alongside your deck’s railing system, so they offer functionality as well as aesthetic appeal. Not only do the gates offer a safe haven for your dog to take in the wonder of the great outdoors, many of our gates have become a choice for homeowners with small children as well. The gates can keep your toddler from straying away from the security of the backyard deck while you are busy cooking those hot dogs on the grill. This feature offers homeowners peace of mind, and more family-time for outdoor living enjoyment. It’s a win, win situation.
Archadeck of Greater Atlanta can custom design a dog-friendly deck gate best suited for your needs and individual taste. Contact us today to learn more about our innovative and functional outdoor living designs. (770) 377 – 2900
greateratlanta@archadeck.net
Archadeck of Greater Atlanta Jeff Mullins and Sol Elisha
Is your Atlanta area deck safe for family and friends? Would you pay $99 to find out?
Archadeck decks are built to a 60 lb live load - that's 50% stronger than the requirement. This Sandy Springs GA. deck with double pergolas built by Archadeck of Greater Atlanta offers beauty and safety
Decks can collapse if they’re built the wrong way by the wrong builder. You may remember the deck crash in Marietta last year. At least five people were injured by the deck pulling away from the wall, falling backwards toward the home, and then landing atop them.
Our decks are so structurally sound you can have the whole neighborhood on your deck with not a care in the world.
Is your deck safe?. Unfortunately, you may be right to worry. Georgia is one of only two states left that require only a 40 lb PSF live load. In other states, the requirement is a 60 lb PSF live load. And to add insult to injury, most builders are not GA licensed builders. Some that are licensed don’t have the means to evaluate what live load levels they’re building to which means they are going by what city inspectors will allow them to build as their gauge.
All of our outdoor structures are constructed of the highest quality materials and expert workmanship which exceeds standard building codes in the area.
How can you find out if your deck is safe? The answer is simple.
Have a certified professional come evaluate your deck. Archadeck of Greater Atlanta provides comprehensive deck inspections for only $99. If you build with us then we will put the $99 toward your project. Our safety standards are superior to other builders in our area because we have engineering tables and have to make sure our decks are certified at 60lb live load, which is 50% higher than the requirement. Our decks last longer since there’s no movement because they’re built so well. Our quality standards ensure your enjoyment as well as your peace of mind. The bottom line is if you wants your deck to last twice as long, look twice as good and be able to confidently get twice the number of people using it at once, use Archadeck of Greater Atlanta.
Don't trust your safety to just any builder- contact Archadeck of Greater Atlanta
Archadeck of Greater Atlanta Jeff Mullins and Sol Elisha
To learn more about our beautiful quality-built decks then contact Archadeck of Greater Atlanta to schedule a comprehensive deck inspection at your home. You will be glad you did. Call us at (770) 377 – 2900 or email us at greateratlanta@archadeck.net
See more photos of our other stunning deck designs by visiting our decks photo galleries located on our website.
Archadeck of Greater Atlanta Creates a Stunning Outdoor Structure with Heart and Soul.
The area under this second story deck utilizes a dry roof to create a full patio complete with custom ceiling including all of the electrical
Many times it is difficult for a homeowner to find a contractor whose strength is both in building outdoor structures and in the art of outdoor design. It is an even rarer occurrence when you find an expert tradesman that can do both and be able to go the extra mile by translating the homeowner’s character and personality into the design itself. For this homeowner, we were able to translate not only the customer’s mental image of what he desired but also the heartfelt emotions and fond memories that he wanted to convey and enjoy through the design.
The covered patio is the perfect place to reflect and relax.
This homeowner’s beloved father was an avid outdoors-man whom recently passed away. As a tribute to his father he wanted to create a backyard that would reflect who he was as well as tie in things that his father would have enjoyed within the space. This structure is meant to serve the homeowner’s love of entertaining but also to pay homage to his late father. As simple as this task may seem, there were obstacles that had to be overcome before we could break ground.
The situation was that the homeowner had a small existing 10×12 “basic” deck, as well as a 10′ slope across the backyard from left to right making it hard to access. This lack of accessibility, plus the slope would entail adding stone work to gain better access to the area and to better utilize the space, but be able to work with the existing slope of the backyard. He was looking for a contractor that could provide both facets of the construction by building a new deck and installing stonework. We really enjoy doing it all, from decks, patios, outdoor rooms, porches and stone and hardscapes. We were able to design an outdoor area that harmonizes with his existing house and the special circumstances present in the slope of the lot.
We took down the homeowner’s existing deck and replaced it with a water-tight deck that is about three times the size of the old one. We also created a stunning stone staircase to gain access around the 10′ hill. The stone staircase also descends into a beautiful flagstone patio and stone wall. The finished space underneath the water tight deck created a breathtaking room downstairs offering privacy and a place of sanctuary. We finished the structure with can lights, two ceiling fans for those warm summer days, sconces on the deck posts and lighting going up the stairwell for safety and ambiance.
The homeowner was quite pleased that we had incorporated so many facets into the design and posted a review on Kudzu.
“Creative and detail-oriented professionals. I am very pleased with the challenging project that Archadeck just completed for me. They took down my existing deck, and built a much larger deck (15′ x 28′) with a complete under deck system and beautiful flagstone patio underneath. The project was complicated by the steep grade of the hillside in my backyard, which they overcame by incorporating heavy stepping-stones and garden lights seamlessly tying in both functionality and aesthetics. While the project did take a few weeks longer than anticipated, I feel the results were more than worth it. Sol and his team went out of their way to block off time with me for material selection and creative dialogue regarding my project vision. If you are looking for professionals that don’t take short cuts and strive for perfection, I highly recommend Archadeck to you.”
By overcoming all the obstacles at hand, we were able to work with the individual characteristics of the “lay of the land” so to speak, to create an unforgettable structure for this homeowner that encompasses everything he wanted and more, and everything his father would have wanted as well.
Archadeck of Greater Atlanta Jeff Mullins and Sol Elisha
We plan, design and build beautiful custom outdoor structures that are as individual as you are, contact Archadeck of Greater Atlanta to learn more. You can call us at (770) 377 – 2900 or email us at greateratlanta@archadeck.net
Spring Is Here; How Safe and Sound is My Deck?
The weather is finally starting to warm up with the recent flurry of activity from Mr. Winter, many of us haven’t really been looking at our decks planning to spend any time outside on them. So for the first time in a while we may see some alarming deterioration in the wood and it feels a bit shakier than you remember. You are starting to wonder how many more winters the wooden deck you’ve enjoyed for so many summers can stand.
Although there are no definitive statistics tracking this, my experience in countless conversations with customers and prospects is that most have no idea when their deck/porch was constructed or what processes and materials were used to build it. Since so many decks and porches are added months or years after the original house is completed, there is typically little documentation or record left for subsequent owners of the property. By most standards, the decks put on homes by the original builder were typicall an after thought with little quality in construction or materials.
The lack of information on construction techniques, materials used and age of many decks and porches makes it even tougher for the typical homeowner to assess its soundness and safety.
Wooden deck past its prime Of course, there are some instances when you don’t need an expert to tell you your deck is well past its prime and needs replacement for functionality, aesthetic appeal and safety.
Deck connection failure at house wall There are some tell tale signs of whether or not this connection was done correctly when the deck was first built, but they may not be obvious to the average homeowner. Although the odds of actually experiencing a deck failure such as this are not exceptionally high for any given homeowner, the potential consequences of such a failure are so severe that it makes sense to take necessary steps to mitigate this risk.
Archadeck Deck Inspection Program flyer As a way to help Atlanta homeowners in this effort, Archadeck offers a Deck Inspection Program to address this need. We will send an expert to your house to do a thorough exam of any/all potential problem areas and evaluate the fundamental soundness and safety of your structure for a $99 fee. The inspection includes rating on each of the applicable items on our 38-point checklist (see below) so you can retain a physical record of our evaluation regardless of the outcome.
Call Archadeck of Buckhead/North Atlanta at 770/377-2900 if you would like to set up a no-obligation Deck Safety Inspection this spring.
Archadeck Deck Inspection Checklist Deck collapses at party, injures three college students
Another deck has collapsed and injured three persons. This accident, according to an AJC report, is just another example of the dangers of poorly constructed decks which can cause serious injury or even death.
Deck safety is one of the most important safety issues concerning a home.
Archadeck, the nations leading deck company, has an incredible deck inspection program which enables a homeowner to sleep safe at night knowing that their deck is in solid shape and connected and supported correctly to the home.
If problems are found, they can can be remedied before an accident occurs. You owe it to yourself and your family to make sure!